Compare the2025 GMC AcadiaVS 2025 Tesla Model X

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Chassis
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Towing
Servicing Ease
Ergonomics
Model Availability
Recommendations

Safety

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In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Acadia are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The Model X doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

The Acadia has a standard front seat center airbag, which deploys between the driver and front passenger, protecting them from injuries caused by striking each other in serious side impacts. The Model X doesn’t offer front seat center airbags.

In a Vehicle-to-Vehicle Frontal Crash Prevention 2.0 test conducted by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), the GMC Acadia achieved a “Good” rating - the highest possible - for its performance in forward collision warning and automatic braking systems, demonstrating its excellent capabilities in preventing collisions. The Tesla Model X has not been tested.

Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The Acadia has standard Reverse Automatic Braking that uses rear sensors to monitor for objects to the rear and automatically applies the brakes to prevent a collision. The Model X doesn’t offer backup collision prevention brakes.

When descending a steep, off-road slope, the Acadia AT4’s standard Hill Descent Control allows you to creep down safely. The Model X doesn’t offer Hill Descent Control.

The Acadia has a standard HD Surround Vision to allow the driver to see objects all around the vehicle on a screen. The Model X only offers a rear monitor and front and rear parking sensors that beep or flash a light. That doesn’t help with obstacles to the sides.

The Acadia has standard OnStar®, which uses a global positioning satellite (GPS) receiver and a cellular system to get turn-by-turn driving directions, remotely unlock your doors if you lock your keys in, help track down your vehicle if it’s stolen or send emergency personnel to the scene if any airbags deploy. The Model X doesn’t offer a GPS response system, only a navigation computer with no live response for emergencies, so if you’re involved in an accident and you’re incapacitated help may not come as quickly.

Both the Acadia and the Model X have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front and rear side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front and rear seatbelt pretensioners, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, available all wheel drive and driver alert monitors.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the GMC Acadia is safer than the Tesla Model X:

	Acadia	Model X
	Driver
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Neck Injury Risk	20.1%	26%
Neck Stress	178 lbs.	207 lbs.
Neck Compression	2 lbs.	33 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	32/13 lbs.	138/94 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH, results indicate that the GMC Acadia is safer than the Tesla Model X:

	Acadia	Model X
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	64	101
Chest Movement	.6 inches	.7 inches
Abdominal Force	73 lbs.	157 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

The GMC Acadia achieved a “Top Safety Pick” rating from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) for the 2025 model year. This recognition was based on its impressive performance in the small overlap frontal crash test, updated moderate overlap front crash test, updated side impact crash test, headlight evaluations, and pedestrian crash prevention testing. The Model X has not yet been evaluated by the IIHS for 2025.

Warranty

There are over 8 times as many GMC dealers as there are Tesla dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Acadia’s warranty.

Reliability

A reliable vehicle saves its owner time, money and trouble. Nobody wants to be stranded or have to be without a vehicle while it’s being repaired. Consumer Reports rates the Acadia’s reliability 24 points higher than the Model X.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2024 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that GMC vehicles are better in initial quality than Tesla vehicles. With 65 fewer problems per 100 vehicles, JD Power ranks GMC higher than Tesla.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2024 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that GMC vehicles are more reliable than Tesla With 46 fewer problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, J.D. Power ranks GMC higher than Tesla.

Tires and Wheels

For better traction, the Acadia Denali’s optional tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Model X (275/45R22 vs. 265/35R22).

The GMC Acadia’s wheels have 6 lugs for longer wheel bearing life, less chance of rotor warping and greater strength. The Tesla Model X only has 5 wheel lugs per wheel.

The Acadia has a standard easy tire fill system. When inflating the tires, the vehicle’s integrated tire pressure sensors keep track of the pressure as the tires fill and tell the driver when the tires are inflated to the proper pressure. The Model X doesn’t offer vehicle monitored tire inflation.

The Acadia has a standard space-saver spare tire so you can replace a flat tire and drive to have the flat repaired or replaced. A spare tire isn’t available on the Model X; it requires you to depend on roadside assistance and your vehicle will have to be towed.

Suspension and Handling

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Acadia’s wheelbase is 4.2 inches longer than on the Model X (120.9 inches vs. 116.7 inches).

For better maneuverability, the Acadia Elevation’s turning circle is 1.5 feet tighter than the Model X’s (38.8 feet vs. 40.3 feet). The Acadia Denali Reserve’s turning circle is .2 feet tighter than the Model X’s (40.1 feet vs. 40.3 feet).

Chassis

The GMC Acadia may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 550 to 650 pounds less than the Tesla Model X.

Passenger Space

The Acadia offers optional seating for 8 passengers; the Model X can only carry up to 7.

The Acadia has .9 inches more front headroom, 3.2 inches more front legroom, 3.5 inches more front hip room, 1.3 inches more front shoulder room, 2.8 inches more rear legroom, 5.1 inches more rear shoulder room, 1.1 inches more third row headroom, 2.3 inches more third row legroom, 9.9 inches more third row hip room and 17.2 inches more third row shoulder room than the Model X.

Cargo Capacity

The Acadia’s cargo area provides more volume than the Model X.

	Acadia	Model X
Behind Third Seat	23 cubic feet	15 cubic feet
Third Seat Folded	57.3 cubic feet	33.8 cubic feet
Second Seat Folded	97.5 cubic feet	88.2 cubic feet

The Acadia’s standard rear seats fold to accommodate long and bulky cargo. The Model X 6-Passenger doesn’t offer folding rear seats.

Pressing a switch automatically lowers the Acadia Denali’s second row seats and pressing a switch automatically lowers or raises the third row seats, to make changing between passengers and cargo easier. The Model X doesn’t offer automatic folding seats.

To make loading groceries and cargo easier when your hands are full, the Acadia’s liftgate can be opened just by waiting momentarily behind the back bumper, leaving your hands completely free. The Model X doesn’t offer a hands-free gesture to open its liftgate, forcing you to put cargo down if your hands are full.

Towing

While the Model X w/22” wheels can only tow 3500, any Acadia can tow a minimum of 5000 pounds.

Servicing Ease

An Oil Life Monitor is standard on the Acadia to save the owner time and money by calculating maintenance intervals for oil changes, air filter replacement, and brake pad replacement, based on actual driving conditions. This takes the guesswork out of keeping your vehicle in top condition and helps it last longer. Tesla doesn’t offer a maintenance reminder on the Model X.

Ergonomics

The Acadia’s entire steering wheel hub sounds the horn, facilitating hitting the horn in an emergency. The Model X has a small, single button on the steering wheel spoke that can be hard to find quickly in an emergency.

The Acadia offers an optional heads-up display that projects speed, tachometer, navigation instruction, infotainment and driver assistance information readouts in front of the driver’s line of sight, allowing drivers to view information without diverting their eyes from the road. The Model X doesn’t offer a heads-up display.

To improve rear visibility by keeping the rear window clear, the Acadia has a standard rear wiper. The Model X doesn’t offer a rear wiper.

The Acadia’s standard side window demisters help clear frost or condensation from the side windows in the winter. The Model X doesn’t even offer side window demisters, so the driver may have to wipe the windows from the outside to gain side vision.

To shield the driver and front passenger’s vision over a larger portion of the windshield and side windows, the Acadia has standard extendable sun visors. The Model X doesn’t offer extendable visors.

The Acadia’s sun-visors swivel front-to-side to block glare from the side windows. The Model X’s visors are fixed into the windshield header.

The Acadia has a standard center folding armrest for the middle row passengers. A center armrest helps make middle row passengers more comfortable and it can provide a boundary between children. The Model X doesn’t offer a middle row seat center armrest.

The Acadia is equipped with both FM and AM stereo radios, offering access to more content and better coverage than the Model X, which solely provides FM radio. With AM radio, you can enjoy a wider variety of stations featuring news, talk shows, sports commentary, native language programing, automated traffic guidance, and emergency broadcasts. AM waves travel further and penetrate buildings and obstacles more effectively than FM signals, especially at night. Having both FM and AM stereo radios the Acadia offers a more comprehensive listening experience compared to only FM in the Model X.

HD Radio boasts several benefits over conventional radio: superior sound quality with clearer and consistent FM broadcasts, CD-quality audio, and Multicast Channels offering up to four streams from a single station, adding programming choices. Cars like the Acadia equipped with available HD Radio provide an improved in-car entertainment experience. The Model X, devoid of this technology, foregoes these benefits. Selecting the GMC Acadia empowers drivers to enjoy a more immersive and enjoyable listening experience while on the go.

The Acadia has a 115-volt a/c outlet on the center console, allowing you to recharge a laptop or run small household appliances without special adapters that can break or get misplaced. The Model X doesn’t offer a house-current electrical outlet.

Model Availability

The Acadia is available in both front-wheel drive and four-wheel drive configurations. The Model X doesn’t offer a two-wheel drive configuration.

Recommendations

Consumer Reports® recommends the GMC Acadia, based on reliability, safety and performance.

The GMC Acadia outsold the Tesla Model X by over two to one during 2024.

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